The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1887-07-01

apiece, have y0u2" he asked, as II his
last hope hung upon her answer.
mo, said Miss Polyphemia, shortly;
and the boy went out, opening the
door so slowly and reluctantly that the
bell scarcely tinkled.
He stood on the sidewalk and gazed
at the Roman candles.
en- have one yet, Miss Poly
phemia heard him say; and then he
hurried off with determined air.
Miss Polyphemia felt something like
pity for him, although he was boy.
Something in his frank blue eyes had
/ seemed to give her an odd sensation
about the heart.
'fPshaw! it isn't as if he had wanted
something to eat, )" she said to herself,
angry at her sOftness. eff he had q
Roman candle he'd only get into mis-
chief-set a house afire or blow up all
creation, most likely"
Meanwhile the boy who had wanted
the Roman candle hurried along the
main street, his bright, hopeful eyes
and his determined step seeming oddly
out of keeping with his poverty
stricken appearance. If they told the
truth, he meant to get Poverty under
ms thumb some day.
He turned into Shoe Lane, a narrow,
dingy little alley, and entered a little
house cleaner than its neighbors, but
dark and poor. His mother, delicate
woman, sad and worn, was ironing,
and his little sister was trying to set a
table taller than herself.
/ GsTlar.tvr x-o,rf1I barra IN rpof mn haforn
five o'clock tomorrow morning and
carry these clothes home. Mrs. Sim
mons IS going away, and must have
them, and they won't be done until
midnight" said the mother.
'I'll be up, never fear" said Barty.
''And I'm going to help you iron; so
the things will be done long before
midnight"
"Barty, want you, called feeble
voice, and Barty hurried into an inner
room, where on the bed lay worn and
wasted little figure that was always
lying there through the long weary
days and weeks and months.
lis your back aching, JIMMY" said
Barty, tenderly.
Yes, it aches awfully when you
don't come for so long 1 want you to
tell me all about the fixin's for the
Fourth. Are they going to have the
band and the b'lOon on the common?
and which way is the procession goin'
Oh, Barty, dom you s'pose there's any
way for me to see a bit of the Fourth
Last year 1 saw three or four rockets,
but then the great tannery wasn't built
between us and the common"
Barty said nothing about the Roman
candle that he hoped to get and burn
on the fence directly under Jimmy S
window. If he shouldn't be able to get
it, Jimmy would be so disappointed
And they were having very hard work
to get the necessaries of life.
Barty was sixteen, but he was small
for his age, and every body in Plumley-
vile who wanted to hire boy wanted
a big one. Barty had tried and tried
in vain to get a situation. He was al
ways on the watch for ''a job" He
felt himself to be the man of the fami-
ly, and he wanted to take care of them
all. to keep his mother from working so
hard, and to get skillful doctor to
cure the spinal disease from which
Jimmy had suffered for years. And in
spite of the discouraging fact that he
had not seemed to grow an inch in the
last year-he kept his measure on the
wOodshed door, and tried it every week
Barty meant to do it.
II.
Barty was up before five in the
morning, and off with great bundle
of clothes to Mrs. simmons He ran
as fast as he could 90, and after he had
delivered his bundle he started fol
home on the run, because he wanted to
get his breakfast eaten as soon as pos
sible, and go in search of Job to earn
money to buy Jimmy's Roman candle.
As he turned into the main street he
saw crowd in front of Miss Poly
phemia's shop, he ran across the street
to see what was the matter. The large
pane of glass in the Fourth-of-July
window was broken. Miss Polyphemia
stood on the steps in a state of great
excitement, her false front on awry, hen
spectacles on the top of her head, and
the largest American flag from hel
window wrapped around her as q
shawl, her toilet evidently having been
hasty one.
AS soon as she caught sight of Barty
she cried: There he is! That's the
boy who did it! Don't let him get
away! / heard the crash, and when
looked out of the window saw him
running down Aldersey street as fast
as he could go. And he's the very boy
who said he tCould hare one of those
Roman candles, though he hadn't the
money to pay for it. The hole in tho
glass j. Just where the Roman candles
are. He could put his hand into the
box"
BY this time the constable whom
/ Miss Polyphemia was addressing had
seized Barty by the collar, and wa;
dragging him off to the lookup in
spite of his assertions of innocence.
r "That was a pretty bold job for 8
young rascal like you, but you Plumley,
Vile boys are bad lot, specially
) along about the Fourth of July. It's
time one of you was made an example
5 Of"
Barty tried TO explain that he was
going on an errand for his mother
. when Miss Polyphemia saw him run.
! ming down Aldersey street, but the
, constable only said that che was toe
good boy to get up 50 early as that to
= do his mothers errands, and he guessed
: it wouldn't hurt him to have day OIL
/ two i'm retirement to mediate on the
: evils of too early rising"
{ The lookup was little brick build
ing on the main street, not far from
Miss Polyphemia's shop. Never hac